The First Council of Nicaea in 325AD stressed the word Consubstantial. When we compare the Nicene Creed with the Apostles Creed, we see that the Nicene Creed explains in more detail the nature of Jesus Christ, this explanation was necessary because of the Arian heresy. The Arian heresy was like a cancer that spread throughout the Church. Many rulers, bishops and priests believed in the heresy. Thanks to the Holy Father, Saint Athanasius (the Father of Orthodoxy) and the Emperor Constantine the Council of Nicaea took place and declared Arian teachings on the nature of Christ to be heretical. Over a hundred years later, the Church reaffirmed the divinity of Jesus Christ at the Council of Ephesus (431AD) when she defined Mary as the Theotokos. Mother of God.
Iconoclasm (8th and 9th Century) – Iconoclasm means image breaker. Those holding to this believe rejected the use of images. They called it superstition and advocated the destruction of images. This was influenced by Islam and would later influence John Calvin (a Protestant reformer) as he stripped Churches of all images. Once again this heresy is anti-matter and contains the belief that somehow matter gets in the way of the divine or hinders the worship of the divine. In the Eastern Church, icons are called “windows into heaven”. Matter does not get in the way of spiritual, but rather can, if used properly, be a window to the spiritual. This is why Saint Paul says, “ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and received in what he has made.”[i] Saint Paul does warn of the danger of beginning to worship “creation” rather than the “creator” which leads to the sin of idolatry and superstition.
As we can see, the evil of anti-matter belief does not go away it just changes its disguise. Almost a millennia after Gnosticism, Albigensianism sprung up and infected whole parts of Europe. This heresy was so devastating that a Crusade was called in southern France to weed it out.
Albigensianism (12th and 13th Century) – Albigensianism was a form of the Manichaean heresy, which taught that a good deity created the world of spirit, and an evil god the material world, including the human body, which is under its control. This belief led to an anti-marriage and anti-life culture that favored suicide and abortion. If matter is evil, why would anyone want to marry and have children? Pregnancy was not seen as a good, but evil. We might think at first, why any culture would adhere to this belief, but we only have to look at our modern “culture of death” to see that there is still an anti-life, anti-marriage mentality. The modern culture of death is not caused because of a hatred of matter, but rather a love of matter. Mother Teresa said, “"It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish." What does this quote mean? If we love matter, love things, we see a child as a threat to what I can have and how I can live. The commitment of marriage also can wrongfully be seen as a threat to what I can have and how I can live. Both extremes; a love of matter or a hate of matter, leads to a “culture of death”.
Protestantism - The anti-matter attitude continued to make itself manifest in the Protestant Reformation. Two major analogies are given to stress this anti-matter attitude. The first is Martin Luther’s analogy of humans as a pile of feces covered by pure white snow. In other words humanity is corrupt and evil, but it is the Grace of God that covers us making us pure. Another analogy is that humanity is like a horse, which can be ridden by God or Satan, who both have equal power to ride the horse.
Why are these analogies incorrect? The first believes that man to his core is evil and can only be covered or masked by Grace rather than redeemed by Grace. Man can never be fully restored or healed but will forever walk with a limp. The second analogy eliminates a person’s free will to choose God.
It was also during the Protestant Reformation that Sacraments were rejected. Why would Protestants reject the Sacraments? Sacraments are outward signs, of inner grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church. These outward signs are matter, for example water, oil, bread, wine, etc. For a sacrament to be valid there must be the correct form (words) and matter. If matter is evil, then all that is necessary are words, there is no need for outward signs. There are also no need for the “bells and smells” of the liturgy including incense, vestments, etc. or sacramental such as rosaries, scapulars, crucifixes, etc. The Blessed Sacrament, bread that becomes the Body of Christ, would of course be rejected. In the Blessed Sacrament, simple matter is being used by God as an instrument of Grace. Matter is transubstantiated, its substance actually transformed from being mere matter to being the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ.
Puritanism – Although there are many forms of puritanism and it is hard to define. Puritanism is associated with a pitting of the body against the soul and a belief that matter is evil.
On the other spectrum of anti-matter belief is a love of matter even to an obsession or addiction.
Hedonism – Hedonism teaches that whatever increases pleasure or one’s general peace of mind is good, anything that decreases it is bad. There is the denial of a future life and so this world and matter is all we have. Moderation is suggested because pleasure must be within your capacity. For example, overeating or drinking can cause pain. The motto is to pursue pleasure and avoid pain. The pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain can lead to addiction if the virtue of temperance (moderation) is not practiced.
Two analogies can help summarize the belief of matter. Imagine a beer on a table. Those believing in an anti-matter religion or philosophy would call it evil or even devil water. A Hedon, would call it good because it gives pleasure and eliminates pain. An addict might even call it a god. The Catholic would call it simply a beer. “In Catholicism, the pint, the pipe and the Cross can all fit together.”[ii] Christopher West gives the analogy of a piece of paper as representing the body. Those believing in an anti-matter religion or philosophy would crumble the paper and throw it away. The other extreme would un-crumble the paper, holding it up (good, bad and ugly) for all to see. The paper is our nature, we began pure and good as a flat unwrinkled piece of paper. Through original sin, we were creased and wrinkled. The answer is not that we should be thrown away, nor should we be held up (with no concern from our flaws) for the whole world to see. The answer is found in Christ who, “fully reveals man to man himself and makes his supreme calling clear.”[iii] It is Christ that takes us (the crumbled, wrinkled paper) and slowly straightens and un-wrinkles us until we are what we were created to be.
[i] Romans 1:20
[ii] G.K. Chesterton
[iii] Pope Paul VI; Gaudium Et Spes; Section 22